This invention generally relates to the art of electrical connectors and, particularly, to a connector for straddle mounting at an edge of a circuit board having circuit traces on at least one side of the board near the edge.
Electrical connectors often are mounted to circuit boards, with the contact portions of a plurality of terminals mounted on the connector housing connected, as by soldering, to circuit traces on the surface of the circuit board. Most often, the connectors are mounted flush to the surface of the board or near the edge of the board where a portion of the connector housing might overlap the board edge. With these surface-mounted connectors, the connector housing typically is mounted to the circuit board by mounting posts inserted into mounting holes in the board in a direction generally perpendicular to the board. The mounting posts do not necessarily permanently fix the connector the board, but the posts precisely locate the connector and temporarily hold the connector during the soldering process which permanently fixes the connector terminals to the circuit traces of the board. With surface-mounted connectors, the connector also may include a shield having grounding tabs soldered to ground pads on the surface of the circuit board.
In some instances, design specifications require an electrical connector to be xe2x80x9cstraddlexe2x80x9d mounted to the edge of the circuit board. Such connectors often are used where it is desirable to have the terminals of the connector connected, as by soldering, to circuit traces on both opposite sides of the board. When a connector is straddle mounted to a circuit board, an edge of the board typically is inserted into a slot of the connector in a direction generally parallel to the board. Therefore, mounting posts used with surface mounted connectors cannot be inserted into holes in the board with straddle mounted connectors. Consequently, somewhat elaborate mounting schemes have been used to mount a straddle mounted connector to the board during soldering of the terminals to the circuit traces on the board. Such schemes often create design problems because they require valuable xe2x80x9creal estatexe2x80x9d on the board which otherwise could be used for routing circuit traces on the board. With the ever-increasing miniaturization of circuit board electronics, this problem is magnified with high density connectors and circuit board circuitry. The present invention is directed to solving these problems by providing novel features which facilitate straddle mounting an electrical connector to a circuit board.
An object, therefore, of the invention is to provide a new and improved electrical connector for straddle mounting at an edge of a circuit board having circuit traces on at least one side of the board near the edge.
In the exemplary embodiment of the invention, the connector includes a dielectric housing defining a slot for receiving the edge of the circuit board. A plurality of terminals are mounted on the housing and include contact portions for connection to the circuit traces on the circuit board, as by soldering. A flexible gripping arm is integral with the housing at one side of the slot for yieldably engaging the circuit board upon insertion of the board into the slot.
As disclosed herein, the housing is molded of plastic material, and the flexible gripping arm is molded integrally therewith. The contact portions of the terminals connect to circuit traces on both opposite sides of the circuit board. The housing defines a fixed datum plane at one side of the slot for locating the circuit board. The flexible gripping arm is disposed at the opposite side of the slot for biasing the circuit board against the datum plane. The housing is elongated, with the terminals mounted on the housing spaced from opposite ends thereof. The slots are provided with at least one of the gripping arms near each opposite end of the housing outside the terminals.
Another feature of the invention involves the provision of EMI tabs on a shield of the connector. Specifically, the slot, the flexible gripping arm and the contact portions of the terminals are located at a rear terminating face of the housing. A shielding plate is juxtaposed against a front mating face of the housing. The shielding plate includes a plurality of integral, resilient EMI tabs projecting forwardly thereof for biasingly engaging a mounting panel to which the connector can be mounted. The shielding plate is stamped and formed of sheet metal material, and the EMI tabs are bent forwardly thereof.
Another feature of the invention involves a shield over at least a portion of the housing, with the shield including a generally planar ground tab for connection to a grounding pad on the circuit board. The ground tab includes a small bump for sliding over the grounding pad when the circuit board is inserted into the slot. The bump prevents the remainder of the ground tab from wiping solder paste off of the grounding pad on the circuit board.
Other objects, features and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following detailed description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings.